"In the criminal justice system, sexually-based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit. These are their stories."

Created by Emmy Award-winning producer Dick Wolf, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," now in its 16th season, is the longest-running primetime drama currently on television. This hard-hitting and emotional series from NBC's "Law & Order" brand chronicles the life and crimes of the Special Victims Unit of the New York City Police Department, an elite squad of detectives who investigate sexually based crimes.

As acting Commander of the SVU, Sergeant Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) is a seasoned veteran of the unit who has seen it all. She leads with empathy and professionalism, all the while dealing with her difficult past - as a product of rape and a witness to her mother's grief, she can personally relate to each victim she tries to help.

Hargitay has garnered eight Emmy nominations for Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Olivia Benson, and won the 2006 Emmy for that category. She has received six SAG nominations for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series, two Golden Globe nominations for Lead Actress in a Drama Series, winning the award in 2005, and has won three Gracie Allen Awards for Outstanding Female Lead in 2004, 2009 and 2014. In 2013, she was honored with a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Detective Odafin "Fin" Tutuola (Ice T) adds a unique sense of humor and undercover investigative experience, making him a formidable match for any partner. Detectives Nick Amaro (Danny Pino) and Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish) have earned their place as top-notch SVU detectives and bring their own talents and style of investigation, while facing head-on the emotional toll it takes to work the SVU. Pino was nominated in 2013 and 2014 for the Imagen Award for his role as Nick Amaro, and was nominated for the ALMA Award for Favorite TV Actor in 2012. Assistant District Attorney Rafael Barba (Raúl Esparza) seeks justice for SVU's victims and survivors with precision and a passion to win.

Popular television host Skip Peterson airs an interview with college student Heather Manning, who claims she was gang raped in a fraternity house. While the tragic account of Heather's story brings national attention to the epidemic of rape on campus, the sensational details of the she-said, they-said case leaves Sgt. Benson and ADA Barba with several suspects and a rocky trial.

Detective Carisi's sister Bella prepares for her wedding to fiancé Tommy Sullivan and the upcoming birth of their child. But when Tommy falls back into bad habits and accuses his parole officer of rape, Carisi must investigate whether the claim is real or just another one of Tommy's excuses.

"Charisma" is the hallmark episode of Law And Order-SVU. It just doesn't get any better than this. The plot of this episode is gritty,gut-wrentching and heartbreaking. A con artist and pedophile,Abraham Ofinian/Eugene(played to perfection by Jeff Kober) squares off against Detective Olivia Benson and the rest of the SVU team in a battle of wits that has a twelve year old girl(pregnant with Ofinian/Hoff's child) as the prize. Mariska Hargitay(Detective Olivia Benson) won the first major acting award(Gloden Globe-for Best Actress in a television drama series) for any Law And Order series for this episode. Ms. Hargitay's scenes with Jeff Kober were simply astounding. The emotional level set by the two during their confrontations set a new standard for the series that will be hard to duplicate. Ms. Hargitay and Mr. Kober should have been standing on the podium at Emmy time for this kind of dedication to their craft. It is amost unimaginable that SVU could ever again reach this kind of perfection. Read more

14x24: Her Negotiation recap: The episode begins and it's a beautiful summer day. The detectives have the day off. Cragen and Fin catch a baseball game while Amaro and Rollins spend time in the park. At a nearby halfway house, two men finish their kitchen duties. One of the men, Lewis, shows the other how he can tolerate pain by burning his fingertips on the grill. He's clearly a demented individual. Rollins' day in the park is interrupted when two teen girls run out of the bushes chasing after Lewis, the man from the shelter kitchen. The two girls and a witness tell Rollins that Lewis flashed his private parts to the girls in the park, on hearing this Rollins takes Lewis to the station for questioning... read more.

14x23: Brief Interlude recap: The episode begins with a woman enjoying a concert at a hotel. She is handed a pill by one of the guests, which she reluctantly has. One of the band members comes down from the stage to dance with this woman. While they are dancing, the guest, who handed the pill to the woman, joins her on the dance floor. Suddenly, Ariel, the woman, begins to feel weird about something and rushes out, saying she wants to go home. She steps out of the hotel on her own. The next day, in a park, while strolling with her baby, a woman sees Ariel, lying motionless on a row boat stranded in a pond. She immediately calls the cops... read more.

14x19: Born Psychopath recap: The episode begins with Irina, a babysitter, looking after two little kids, Henry and Ruby, in a busy household. In school, Ruby is shown sitting at the nurse’s office and telling the nurse that her head and her stomach hurts. The nurse finds a bump on Ruby’s head and a bruise on her stomach. She looks worried. Nick and Olivia arrive at the school after they are informed about Ruby’s injuries. Olivia has a talk with Ruby, who says she was pushed by a monster. Ruby’s mom is called in and she tells Olivia and Nick that Irina dropped Ruby off at school and also that Ruby was fine, when she left home in the morning... read more.

14x21: Traumatic Wound recap: The episode begins with a couple of girls heading for a party. They arrive at the venue where a band is performing onstage and there is a huge crowd that has gathered for the performance. The girls meet up with a guy called Jake. The three a busy dancing and enjoying a drink, when one of the girls has her top pulled down by some guy in the crowd. She is pushed to the ground and her clothes are torn off by a bunch of guys, who then rape her. She yells out for help and so does her friend, but because of all the commotion no one hears them. Gaby Shaw, the victim, is later rushed to the hospital, while Olivia, Nick and Munch arrive at the venue, where a bunch of suspects have been rounded up... read more.

14x22: Poisoned Motive recap: At the SVU squad, the detectives are all busy bringing in a group of girls while Rollins attempts to fingerprint the woman who was holding them; Mrs. Chang. As Rollins leads Mrs. Chang out of the precinct, someone is shown looking at the detectives through a scope. As Finn puts Chang into the car, Rollins heads over to the driver’s side. A shot is fired and Rollins is hit, falling against the car. Finn attends to Rollins and points Benson and Amaro to a nearby rooftop where the shots originated. As Benson and Amaro race to the building, Finn calls for help... read more.